AP File PhotoDetroit Lions president Tom Lewand, pictured here in a file photo, testified in favor of the bill, which calls for removing athletes under age 18 from a sports activity if a concussion is suspected.

LANSING, MI - With concerns mounting over concussions suffered by athletes, the Michigan Legislature is considering a bill aimed at protecting youth involved in sports.

Detroit Lions president Tom Lewand endorses the effort as part of a National Football League initiative to get similar legislation passed in all 50 states and Congress. Lewand testified at the Senate hearing on the bill.

A bill that could soon come up for a vote in the Michigan Senate calls for removing athletes under age 18 from a sports activity if a concussion is suspected. Written clearance from a health professional would be needed for the youth to return to action.

Senate Bill 1122 would apply to all organizing entities that offer youth sports, including schools.

The proposal would require the Michigan Department of Community Health to develop educational material and a training program related to concussion awareness, and make that information available on the department’s website. Organizers of athletic programs would have to comply with the training program requirements.

The potential effects of repeated concussions have received the most publicity related to former professional football players. But concerns about brain injury are filtering down to all levels of athletics in several different sports. Many states already have adopted proposals with similar requirements to the one now under consideration in Michigan.

“The number of children suffering concussions during organized athletic activity is rising at an alarming rate and is impacting the lives of many young people throughout Michigan and nationwide,” Sen. John Proos, R-St. Joseph, said in a statement. “This program would help everyone involved recognize concussions and brain injuries when they occur and put in place guidelines for when a young athlete can play again after suffering a concussion.”

Representatives from the NFL’s Detroit Lions testified in favor of the bill.

Detroit Lions President Tom Lewand said in a press release from Proos' office, “What the NFL and the Detroit Lions are working to establish is a standard of care across the country, so that youth athletes, coaches and volunteers are knowledgeable enough to recognize the signs of concussion and kids get the medical attention they need to recover before returning to play.”

It was approved this week by the Senate Health Policy Committee and is awaiting a vote on the Senate floor.